The run has ended. RIFC fell 1-0 in Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference Final. It’s always hard to process and collect thoughts when the season is over. But there’s a lot to say here outside of just what happened on the field. So with that being said, I’m going to talk about the trip to Pittsburgh, what happened on the field, and what happened in the stands.
The Trip
Regardless of the result, it always feels great to follow RIFC. It’s about the passion and dedication towards the team. For me, it started at 3:45 am on Saturday. I was driving solo for the 9 hour trip, equipped only with some music and some excitement about the game. I made my first stop only an hour later because this was simply too tempting:
Yeah it was in Connecticut, but this place is one of the very few good things to come from that state.
The rest of the trip was pretty smooth sailing and after refueling, I made my last stop before Pittsburgh in State College. Whenever I travel, which is rarely, I like to get glimpse of the sports arenas and stadiums in the area. Since I was driving through, stopping by at Penn State was something I had to do.
I arrived at the hotel in Pittsburgh at 1:15 and was ready to get some rest before heading out. Special shout out to FQB, Timmy, and Ryan. FQB for arranging the hotel, Timmy for arranging the tickets, and all of them for calling me several times during the drive to just BS and check in.
On the Field
As for the actual game, there really isn’t a ton I want to say. But I have to start with the fact that both Clay Holstad and Zach Herivaux started on the bench. Unless there were injury concerns, you have to start at least one of them next to Hugo in the midfield. Instead, Khano went with Marc Ybarra. Maybe the thought here was that Ybarra would give Hugo more flexibility to carry the ball forward, which Hugo did end up doing. But it didn’t work. Ybarra also got sent off right around the hour mark, which made it impossible for Khano to remedy the situation with substitutions. To be fair to Marc though, I didn’t think his first foul was a yellow. He was also put in a bad spot where he had to slide in for his second yellow. Just a brutal situation.
The only goal of the game came from Robbie Mertz in the 55th minute:
It was a great finish by Mertz but the stumble from Hugo was really unfortunate there. You have to think he had a chance to get in the way of the shot if he stays up.
Lastly, I thought RIFC had a few decent chances that they weren’t able to finish. Hamady Diop had a free kick saved and JJ Williams went through on goal but couldn’t score. Overall, a tough way to go out.
Altercation in the Stands
Operationally, this whole thing was a mess from the Riverhounds. It starts with the ticket allocation. And it isn’t even really about the number of tickets, though I certainly said my piece about that. It’s about where we were put. We were in the front rows of a section near the corner flag, where anyone walking by could come up and try to instigate. More on that soon.
We also weren’t given any security. I know to the outside this might sound like we’re weak or cowardly, but the reality is that it should be standard protocol. It isn’t that we were expecting anything to happen, it’s just something that should be done for everyone’s safety. Eventually we did get a security guard to stand near our section, but that accomplished nothing as right after the game every Riverhounds fan who was not in their supporters section made their way over by passing right in front of us. One fan started exchanging words with La Banda and stepped up on a seat to get in their faces and start a fight. That fan was quickly body slammed to the ground (will not/can not confirm by whom). A fight started breaking out and our staff member had to literally run to the security guard to yell at him to step in. It was an absolute joke.
We all traveled to have a good time supporting our club, win or lose. And there will always, as it should be, be a hostile exchange of words back and forth between opposing fans. But it should never get to the point where fights break out. And for me, the majority of that responsibility falls on the home team’s operations. And that was a massive failure.
Up Next
Check out the Tide Talk socials or the discord for any updates on future content. We will of course have player ratings and a podcast to go over the loss in Pittsburgh. And there will be plenty to come this offseason. It’s a second year down writing about this team and despite the heartbreak of last night’s loss, I still enjoy doing it as much as ever. So for one final time in the 2025 season, UP THE TIDE!
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